Howdy Magfesters and Zuners,

As a longtime attendee of MAGFest, the Music and Gaming Festival, I have always loved the ethos this event has upheld. At its core, MAGFest is dedicated to preserving the legacy of music and gaming history while fostering a community where we socialize to have fun along the way.

One of the highlights of attending this event is the wicked cool swadge (electronic swag badge) that is offered each year as merch. No other event I have gone to even remotely does something like this, making it such a unique experience. These swadges have only gotten better with every iteration, with more intricate designs, better screens, added utility, fun games, and of course, glorious RGB lights that are redder, greener, and bluer than ever before.

But what if we could take this one step further? What if we could honor a nearly-forgotten yet perfectly aligned piece of tech history: the Zune? Microsoft’s MP3 player from the late 2000s was ahead of its time, featuring music, games, and even social functionality. Imagine celebrating its legacy with a Zune-inspired swadge. The Squircle Swadge? Or maybe... the Zwadge? I’ll let chat cook.

What features could the "Squircle" Swadge offer?

• 3.5mm headphone jack to connect those cans to.
• Micro-SD card slot for loading your favorite chiptunes or OSTs.
• Customizable backgrounds with event-inspired visuals. The UI could even change based on event participation or achievements.
• An Audiosurf-esque rhythm game featuring jammin MAGFest music.
• The ability to share tracks, even if they were limited to just preloaded (or unlocked) MAGFest songs. A throwback to the song sharing feature on the Zune.
• Gamified trophy system to reward users.
• A Modular design. The Squircle Swadge could be part of a larger swadge, since these are usually designed around the yearly event theme.
• Classic Zune-style button layout: While a true "squircle" touch-sensitive button might be a stretch, replicating the iconic design layout would be amazing.
• Super awesome 3D printed rectangular shells!

If you want to give this idea THE BEANS and see it come to a MAGFest near you, please consider signing this petition and spreading the word.

P.S. If you are reading this before January 23rd @ 7:00 PM ET, check out our Zune panel at the event! For those who miss it, the panel will be uploaded to the MAGFest YouTube channel, so stay tuned there! Achievement unlocked: +100 useless golden banana points if you’ve attended the panel, we hope you enjoyed it.

Squircle Swadge or bust.